Slovakia supports the EU in setting a goal of reaching carbon neutrality by 2050, Prime Minister Peter Pellegrini stated on Tuesday after meeting President Zuzana Čaputová, who praised this move. According to Pellegrini, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres was also interested in Slovakia's approach in this matter. "[Guterres] has chosen Slovakia as one of the countries he contacted before the summit of EU leaders taking place this week, in order to secure support for the EU's ambitious aim of achieving carbon neutrality in our economy by 2050," clarified Pellegrini. The prime minister said that he'll present his approach at the European Council summit, while Čaputová will do the same at a UN climate action summit that will take place in September in New York. "I'm very glad that Slovakia not only considers this commitment positive but also wants to adopt it," stated Čaputová.
According to Slovak MEP Martin Hojsík, so far 18 out of 28 EU countries have supported the goal, namely Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Latvia, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and the UK. Pope Francis has also recently expressed his support. Eight Slovak MEPs, namely Michal Šimečka, Monika Beňová, Michal Wiezik, Vladimír Bilčík, Peter Pollák, Ivan Štefanec, Miriam Lexmann (who will be an MEP after Brexit takes place) and Hojsík have signed a pledge that calls for the Slovak Government to meet the goal. Pellegrini's statement has been welcomed both by Greenpeace Slovakia and the non-profit organisation Friends of the Earth-CEPA, who say they consider this a ground-breaking move.
